Running head: Justification Report Company Picnic

Justification Report Company Picnic

Juan Fuentes
ENG 315 Professional Communications
Professor Gazetta Roberts
January 24, 2015

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Professor Gazetta Roberts

Professor of English
Strayer University
2303 Dulles Station Blvd
Herndon, VA 20171
January 24, 2015
Juan Fuentes
5718 University Drive
Orlando, FL 32765
Dear Professor Roberts,
I enclose the report you requested on January 24, 2015 regarding the selection of a suitable event
manager for the upcoming Company picnic.
Analysis two possible event suppliers CPE USA and EVENTECTIVE shows that both
alternatives offer great event options. However, CPE USA meets our conditions regarding
budget, schedules and packaged deals better than its rival firm does. Based on these factors, I
recommend we utilize the services of CPE USA for our company picnic.
Thank you for your trust in my ability to research and present this important report. I appreciate
the opportunity and thank you for your time and effort in reviewing this recommendation and
your timely response. If you have any questions regarding this report, please feel free to contact
me at (999) 999-9999.
Sincerely,

Juan Fuentes

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Table of Contents
Executive Summary.........................................................................................................................4
Company Picnic...............................................................................................................................5
Problem Statement...........................................................................................................................5
Terminology.....................................................................................................................................6
Overview of Alternatives.................................................................................................................6
Criteria.............................................................................................................................................7
1.

Feature Criteria....................................................................................................................7

2.

Company Criteria.................................................................................................................7

3.

Cost Criteria.........................................................................................................................8

Research Methods............................................................................................................................8
Evaluation of Alternatives...............................................................................................................8
Findings and Analysis......................................................................................................................9
The Suppliers...............................................................................................................................9
Features......................................................................................................................................10
Companies.................................................................................................................................11
Costs...........................................................................................................................................11
Recommendation...........................................................................................................................12
References......................................................................................................................................13

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Executive Summary
Corporate events such as a picnic involving all personnel help build community feeling and
promote teamwork among staff. We have decided to organize a picnic for all personnel and the
choice of the best event manager for this event is critical for its success. This report provides an
analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of event-management companies to arrive at a
recommendation for hiring the services of one supplier. Preliminary investigation helped narrow
down the choice to two companies i.e. Function Events (Function) and The Company Picnic
Company (CPC) because either of these have the ability to provide everything we need for this
function to succeed. Further analysis included reviews of their location, costs, and service via
their respective websites and feedback from earlier customers.
This report shows that although they provide similar services, Function best matches all our
needs of overall services, location, and cost. The analysis helps justify the recommendation to
hire Function as our event manager.

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Company Picnic
After a long year of vicissitudes, and facing the challenges ahead in the New Year, our
companys executives have decided that all personnel have earned a corporate sponsored picnic.
Having this picnic will help communicate our appreciation for their hard work and encourage
continued teamwork. Harkless (2013) stated that bringing the workforce together as a team is
critical and that company-wide gatherings provide an excellent opportunity to achieve this goal
and to build on productivity, morale, and overall growth. We will also be able to integrate our
various company divisions for improved cross-divisional communications in future. Employees
of different positions, ranks, and departments will come together at the event. Simple
interactions at the picnic will help close any gaps and allow building respect and appreciation of
various responsibilities and roles within the company. However, companywide events can also
pose challenges and could have negative outcomes if due care does not go into planning and
organization to make the event successful (Quast, 2014).
For us to achieve the desired results and to negate chances of failure, it is critical that we select
the right service provider (supplier) for this event. This report provides an analysis of two
possible event management companies to help determine which one will provide everything we
need at the right price.

Problem Statement
Hiring the services of an outside supplier is important as we do not have any capability or
experience in organizing such an event involving a large number of employees, providing

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transportation, and organizing the catering. We also have to take into consideration the cost of
such a huge undertaking. The problem we face is the need to choose between two almost equally
proficient event-planning service providers.

Terminology
This report does not use any special terminology and relies on commonly understood words.

Overview of Alternatives
This report considered the advantages of a companywide event that would help convey our
gratitude to employees for their hard work. Such an event would also assist in improving
communications and teamwork in future operations. Looking at possible forms the event may
take it appears that a company-sponsored picnic would be the best option.
I have explored two options from among possible suppliers, viz. Function Events (Function)
and The Company Picnic Company (CPC). Both CPC and Function are reputed event
management companies with good experience in managing such events. Analysis of the features,
company, and costs indicates as follows:
Alternative A
-

CPC is a smaller company offering a boutique experience for relatively smaller

gatherings
CPC offers strictly non-vegetarian meals, which may not suit the tastes of a significant

number of our employees

CPC offers an array of excellent locations for hosting the event
CPC is more expensive than its competitor all other things being equal

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Alternative B
-

Function is a larger company and its scale of operations allows it to offer lower prices

compared to CPC
The variety of food choices offered is much larger and Function can simultaneously

deliver menus that cater to a wider variety of tastes

The locations offered for hosting the event appear as good as those by CPC

The evaluation of choices available allows me to recommend that we organize a picnic for our
employees using the services of Function as the event manager and service provider.

Criteria
Criteria for selection of the optimal event manager for organizing the picnic were divided into
three broad categories and individual features investigated as under:
1. Feature Criteria
- How do the suppliers compare in terms of providing a customized service
- Does the supplier cater to different needs and preferences in food within the
-

overall theme
The quality and convenience of the locations offered
The quality of entertainment activities offered
Does the supplier offer an integrated service that includes transport to and from

the venue
- Does the supplier go the extra mile to make the event successful
2. Company Criteria
- How long has the supplier been in the business
- Is the suppliers business profitable
- Does the supplier have adequate support staff within the organization or from
reliable outside support
- Will the supplier provide a dedicated manager for coordination of the event
3. Cost Criteria
- All things being equal, how do costs compare among the suppliers
- Are there any hidden costs involved
- Is the price fixed or subject to negotiation
- Is the cost fixed and not subject to any last minute escalations
- Mode of payment accepted and credit/discount facilities offered

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Research Methods

The research methods used consist of a comprehensive research on the internet for each criterion
mentioned above. Understanding that the suppliers own website would only represent an effort
at promotion and discuss positives alone made it essential to use secondary sources on the
internet to identify desirable qualities and compare those offered by the particular supplier. This
report has placed a specific emphasis on evaluation of customer feedback as reported on the
suppliers website and other postings. The researcher contacted each supplier through e-mail to
obtain ballpark costs for hosting the company picnic. The researcher did not attempt to contact
previous customer to obtain direct feedback.
The following passages present the information obtained from the sources explained above
collated along each criterion.

Evaluation of Alternatives
As an initial step in the research and recommendations, this report provides and evaluation of the
pros and cons of having a company picnic compared to other alternatives suggested in literature.
Using a comprehensive research involving 15 multinational companies, Gratton and Erickson
(2007) suggested eight ways to for building collaborative teams. Building relationships and trust
among team members, building a corporate culture, forming teams where individuals understand
the goals and their own roles in meeting the goals hold the key to building successful teams.
In addition to their skills and experience, people bring their personality also to a team. Team
Building Events (TBEs) focus on giving individuals within a team an opportunity to understand
how individual behavior influences team building process. TBEs have also proven as excellent
aids for improving communications and communication skills. Such activities help build mutual

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trust and promote the understanding that everybody has talents, viewpoints, and good ideas and
bringing them together to bear on the work helps improve work and work environment. The
more inclusive and trustful everyone is the greater the number of will be on hand to tackle
problems and the greater the synergy created. TBEs come in a variety of different levels and
sizes. Choosing the right TBE is thus critical. The idea of conducting a TBE in a fun
atmosphere away from the workplace appears the best alternative as it adds to the feeling of
being valued and trusted among participants who see the event as a reward for good work in the
past and as an incentive to perform well in future. Corporate Picnics, Corporate Outings, and
Companywide events are perfect opportunities to deploy Team Building Programs.
Having decided that sponsoring a companywide picnic is the best alternative, evaluation of the
two alternative suppliers appears below.

Findings and Analysis

The Suppliers
Function Events (Function) provides a comprehensive and up-to-date package for people
planning events such as weddings, parties, and meetings. The company is celebrating 10 years in
this line. It offers a depth of experience of having helped organize several such events.
The Company Picnic Company (CPC) offer an excellent and professional package of services to
cater to every need for a successful event, especially company picnics. Functions organized
around clambakes, barbeques, mixed grills, pig roasts, or steak fries appear as their main
strengths.

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Features
Both suppliers avow their outstanding capabilities in providing customized services. However,
CPC appears to specializing in catering more to a strictly non-vegetarian spread that could be
problematic for some employees. Function, on the other hand, can cater to any requirement in
terms of food offerings.
Locations offered by either supplier provide a good selection for us to choose from depending on
the number of employees we expect to participate. Both suppliers do not offer any on-site
entertainment or facilities to hold any games but have indicated their willingness to help locate a
different supplier for this service. Alternatively, we could form a cross-functional team within
our organization to attend to this work. This ought to add to the sense of participation and
generation of greater interest in the picnic.
Both suppliers do not offer any transport facility to or from the picnic site. We do not consider
this as an important aspect because picking up and dropping people back from diverse
geographical locations could create logistical difficulties. We recommend people use their own
transport and pool with others while the company compensates them for the cost incurred.
Reviews from other customers clearly show both suppliers have received excellent feedback
from a large array of customers who organized big and small events using their services. The
customer list of Function consists of many companies of international repute. These include
Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline, SKF, General Motors, Mission Foods and a host of others. On the other
hand, the list of satisfied customers from CPC consists of individuals and representatives of
relatively much smaller companies. Because our company is large and we expect about 400
employees to attend, the choice appears to favor Function.

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Companies
Function is a relatively large financial and organizational size compared to CPC. Both have been
in the business of event management for over 10 years and are profitable in their operations.
Their history of successful management of events, large and small, clearly indicates that they
have an adequate and experienced staff. The fact that both companies have requested for an
advance notice of a minimum of four weeks for organizing the event shows that they have a good
reputation among potential customers and organizing such events routine.
Both suppliers assured that they would designate a senior member of staff to coordinate the
details of the event with us and would be our one line of communicating with them. They also
assured us that they would not spare any effort in helping us make the picnic a great success.
Costs
Function and CPC offer special packages and discounts for events organized during weekdays
and a premium applies on events on Friday and Saturday evenings.
Cost per head, measured by the number of plates used for the main course (not by attendance),
would perhaps form the strongest basis for our decision. Indicated costs, excluding cost of
beverages served during the picnic are:
-

Function
CPC

$45.00 per plate

$52.50 per plate

Both prices are indicative and shall depend on the menu selection that we make. The prices
indicated cover a very lavish layout.

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Prices include VAT and any other applicable tax i.e. there are no hidden cost. The suppliers will
accept payment by a check drawn in their favor. We are certain that we can negotiate a discount
of about 5-10% once we make our final choice.
The following table shows the comparison between the two suppliers.
Comparison of Alternatives
Criteria

Function

CPC

Yes
High

Yes
Limited

Excellent
Good
None
None
Professiona
l

Good
Good
None
None
Professiona
l

+15 Years
Yes
Adequate
Yes

+10 Years
Yes
Adequate
Yes

$45.00
None
Yes
5-10%
None
Check
None

$52.50
None
Yes
5-10%
None
Check
None

Features
Customized Service
Food Variety
Location
Quality
Convenience
Entertainment Offered
Transport
Proactive Support
Compan
y
Length of Experience
Profitability
Adequacy of Staff
Dedicated Coordinator
Cost
Cost per Head
Any Hidden Costs
Negotiable
Possible Discount
Escalation
Payment
Credit

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Recommendation

Based on the above research, I believe that having a company picnic best fits our needs of a costeffective event that will help reward employees while helping build company morale and
teamwork through interactions between employees. Analysis of the company profiles, the
features offered, and cost shows that Function would be the right supplier to opt for our picnic.

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References
Gratton, L. and Erickson, T.J. (2007). Eight ways to build collaborative teams. Harvard Business
Review, 2007 (November), Retrieved from: https://hbr.org/2007/11/eight-ways-to-buildcollaborative-teams/
Harkless, G. (2013.). Why you should have a company picnic. Retrieved February 9, 2015, from
http://rescue.ceoblognation.com/2013/06/25/why-you-should-have-a-company-picnic/
Quast, L. (2014, May 14). It's not a company picnic, it's a business event: tips to survive.
Accessed from http://www.forbes.com/sites/lisaquast/2014/05/12/its-not-a-companypicnic-its-a-business-event-tips-to-survive/
The Company Picnic Company (2015). Website accessed from
http://www.thecompanypicnicco.com/catering-ri-testimonials/testimonials-the-companypicnic-company-ri.htm
The Company Picnic Function (2015). Website accessed from
http://www.companypicnicfunction.com/index.html